iPhoto: Troubleshooting Camera Connections

iPhoto does not recognize a camera connected to the computer.

This document contains troubleshooting steps for connecting digital cameras with iPhoto. These steps include ensuring the camera is compatible, the computer has the latest version of Mac OS X, iPhoto is the most current, and the camera works with the Picture-Transfer-Protocol (PTP) feature.

Make sure the camera is compatible with iPhoto.

Consult your camera's documentation to see if there are multiple modes that the camera can use to communicate with the computer over USB. Some cameras have a mass storage mode, and some cameras include an option to place the camera in Picture-Transfer-Protocol (PTP) mode. Try either mode to see if the camera can be recognized by iPhoto.

Make sure iPhoto and Mac OS X versions are up to date. Mac OS X updates include additional camera support.

Turn the camera on and connect it to the computer. Check System Profiler (in the Utilities folder) to see if the camera is listed as connected under USB.

Open Image Capture (in the Applications folder) and see if the camera is recognized in this application. If your camera is still not recognized by iPhoto, check to see if the camera has a removeable storage card, such as a Compact Flash (CF) or Secure Digital (SD) card. If so, you may be able to mount this card and read the photo files from the Finder if you have a USB or FireWire card reader connected to your computer.